![Nationwide tax-funded abortion is top priority for Democrats in next session #Catholic The Democratic Party will head into the 2027 legislative session with majorities in the House of Representatives and the Senate following a landslide victory in the midterm elections, and one of its focuses will be to advance pro-abortion legislation.Earlier this year, House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries promised healthcare would be one of the top Democratic priorities for 2027 and created a Cost-of-Living Healthcare Working Group to develop a legislative plan, led by Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-New York, and Rep. Terri Sewell, D-Alabama.Based on a memo developed by the working group and obtained by Politico in late September, Democratic plans to codify the now-defunct Roe v. Wade Supreme Court decision, which made abortion legal nationwide, and plans for tax-funded elective abortions, “should be considered for advancement in the first 100 hours” of the legislative session.“Reestablish a federal right to abortion care and end restrictions that prevent people covered through federal health programs from receiving abortion coverage,” read the memo, which is dated Sept. 1 and was published by Politico on Sept. 25.EWTN News reached out to Ocasio-Cortez’s office and Sewell’s office to ask whether this is still the plan but did not receive a response by the time of publication.The White House provided a statement to EWTN News when asked about Democrats’ plans to prioritize abortion legislation but did not specifically say whether President Donald Trump would veto any pro-abortion bills.“The Trump Administration is committed to Gold Standard Science, as outlined in detail by President Trump’s Executive Order, ‘Restoring Gold Standard Science,’” White House spokeswoman Allison Schuster said in the statement. “The mifepristone safety review by the FDA is just one example of President Trumpʼs total commitment to ensuring the health and safety of all Americans.”2 bills for immediate considerationOne bill the working group suggests Democrats consider to advance in the first 100 hours is the Women’s Health Protection Act, which was first introduced in 2013 to codify Roe. This bill would declare abortion “a human right” and prevent state governments from restricting abortion before fetal viability, which is typically in the 23rd or 24th week of pregnancy.According to the 2025 version of the bill, viability is when the unborn child can survive outside of the womb. Whether the unborn child is viable would be determined by “the treating health care provider,” who is typically the abortionist.Although some post-viability abortion restrictions would be allowed, all state laws would need to allow abortion through the ninth month of pregnancy if “the treating health care provider,” who is typically the abortionist, deems it necessary to protect “the life or health of the patient.” The text is unclear as to what qualifies as a threat to the patient’s health.If this bill were to become law, it would immediately invalidate state-level pro-life laws across the country.“It would sweep aside state protections for unborn children,” Laura Echevarria, communications director National Right to Life, told EWTN News.She said the bill would “take away the ability for [people’s] elected representatives … [to] protect babies before viability.” And after viability, she said abortions would be allowed “if the abortionist determines the abortion is necessary.”Echevarria said the text used in the bill offers a “very broad definition” for the health exemption and warned that it could include not just physical health complications but also mental health complications, as determined by the abortionist.The second bill the working group suggests Democrats consider within the first 100 hours is the Equal Access to Abortion Coverage in Health Insurance (EACH) Act, which would add abortion coverage to tax-funded health insurance plans for government workers and people enrolled in Medicare, Medicaid, and the Childrenʼs Health Insurance Program (CHIP).Essentially, the bill would eliminate the Hyde Amendment, which has been included in spending bills since 1976 to prohibit federal funds for elective abortions. Although the ban on tax-funded abortion originally had bipartisan support, Democrats have sought to eliminate the ban in recent years.Echevarria said the EACH Act would “require abortion coverage across specific government health programs,” with the goal being to eliminate Hyde. She said: “The federal government would ensure that abortion would be covered, so it’s very broad and very sweeping.”She said the Democrats’ plan to prioritize these bills is “disappointing” but “not surprising.” She said that although the Democratic Party used to welcome pro-life voices, “now it’s the party that encourages women to ‘shout their abortion.’”“It used to be we had more pro-life Democrats in the House years ago, [but] the Democratic Party has not welcomed pro-lifers in years,” Echevarria said. “So they are not welcoming that viewpoint.”Kelsey Pritchard, the communications director for Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America, said in a statement to EWTN News that this agenda shows “pro-abortion Democrat extremism will be on full display next Congress.”In addition to the two bills included in the memo, Pritchard said: “We also anticipate efforts to revive the expansion of Obamacare subsidies that further taxpayer funded abortion coverage, another avenue for more babies to die at the hands of the federal government.”The incoming members of Congress will be sworn in at noon on Jan. 3, 2027. Although not all of the results are finalized, Democrats will have at least 253 seats in the House and at least 54 seats in the Senate.](https://unitedyam.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/11/nationwide-tax-funded-abortion-is-top-priority-for-democrats-in-next-session-catholic-the-democratic-party-will-head-into-the-2027-legislative-session-with-majorities-in-the-house-of-representatives.png "Nationwide tax-funded abortion is top priority for Democrats in next session #Catholic The Democratic Party will head into the 2027 legislative session with majorities in the House of Representatives and the Senate following a landslide victory in the midterm elections, and one of its focuses will be to advance pro-abortion legislation.Earlier this year, House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries promised healthcare would be one of the top Democratic priorities for 2027 and created a Cost-of-Living Healthcare Working Group to develop a legislative plan, led by Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-New York, and Rep. Terri Sewell, D-Alabama.Based on a memo developed by the working group and obtained by Politico in late September, Democratic plans to codify the now-defunct Roe v. Wade Supreme Court decision, which made abortion legal nationwide, and plans for tax-funded elective abortions, “should be considered for advancement in the first 100 hours” of the legislative session.“Reestablish a federal right to abortion care and end restrictions that prevent people covered through federal health programs from receiving abortion coverage,” read the memo, which is dated Sept. 1 and was published by Politico on Sept. 25.EWTN News reached out to Ocasio-Cortez’s office and Sewell’s office to ask whether this is still the plan but did not receive a response by the time of publication.The White House provided a statement to EWTN News when asked about Democrats’ plans to prioritize abortion legislation but did not specifically say whether President Donald Trump would veto any pro-abortion bills.“The Trump Administration is committed to Gold Standard Science, as outlined in detail by President Trump’s Executive Order, ‘Restoring Gold Standard Science,’” White House spokeswoman Allison Schuster said in the statement. “The mifepristone safety review by the FDA is just one example of President Trumpʼs total commitment to ensuring the health and safety of all Americans.”2 bills for immediate considerationOne bill the working group suggests Democrats consider to advance in the first 100 hours is the Women’s Health Protection Act, which was first introduced in 2013 to codify Roe. This bill would declare abortion “a human right” and prevent state governments from restricting abortion before fetal viability, which is typically in the 23rd or 24th week of pregnancy.According to the 2025 version of the bill, viability is when the unborn child can survive outside of the womb. Whether the unborn child is viable would be determined by “the treating health care provider,” who is typically the abortionist.Although some post-viability abortion restrictions would be allowed, all state laws would need to allow abortion through the ninth month of pregnancy if “the treating health care provider,” who is typically the abortionist, deems it necessary to protect “the life or health of the patient.” The text is unclear as to what qualifies as a threat to the patient’s health.If this bill were to become law, it would immediately invalidate state-level pro-life laws across the country.“It would sweep aside state protections for unborn children,” Laura Echevarria, communications director National Right to Life, told EWTN News.She said the bill would “take away the ability for [people’s] elected representatives … [to] protect babies before viability.” And after viability, she said abortions would be allowed “if the abortionist determines the abortion is necessary.”Echevarria said the text used in the bill offers a “very broad definition” for the health exemption and warned that it could include not just physical health complications but also mental health complications, as determined by the abortionist.The second bill the working group suggests Democrats consider within the first 100 hours is the Equal Access to Abortion Coverage in Health Insurance (EACH) Act, which would add abortion coverage to tax-funded health insurance plans for government workers and people enrolled in Medicare, Medicaid, and the Childrenʼs Health Insurance Program (CHIP).Essentially, the bill would eliminate the Hyde Amendment, which has been included in spending bills since 1976 to prohibit federal funds for elective abortions. Although the ban on tax-funded abortion originally had bipartisan support, Democrats have sought to eliminate the ban in recent years.Echevarria said the EACH Act would “require abortion coverage across specific government health programs,” with the goal being to eliminate Hyde. She said: “The federal government would ensure that abortion would be covered, so it’s very broad and very sweeping.”She said the Democrats’ plan to prioritize these bills is “disappointing” but “not surprising.” She said that although the Democratic Party used to welcome pro-life voices, “now it’s the party that encourages women to ‘shout their abortion.’”“It used to be we had more pro-life Democrats in the House years ago, [but] the Democratic Party has not welcomed pro-lifers in years,” Echevarria said. “So they are not welcoming that viewpoint.”Kelsey Pritchard, the communications director for Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America, said in a statement to EWTN News that this agenda shows “pro-abortion Democrat extremism will be on full display next Congress.”In addition to the two bills included in the memo, Pritchard said: “We also anticipate efforts to revive the expansion of Obamacare subsidies that further taxpayer funded abortion coverage, another avenue for more babies to die at the hands of the federal government.”The incoming members of Congress will be sworn in at noon on Jan. 3, 2027. Although not all of the results are finalized, Democrats will have at least 253 seats in the House and at least 54 seats in the Senate.")
Democrats are considering two abortion-related bills for the first 100 hours of the 2027 legislative session: one to legalize abortion nationwide and one to allow federal tax funds for abortion.
![Conference encourages Black Catholic men to lead families, parishes, and communities #Catholic Twenty-four years ago three priests from the Society of the Divine Word and founders of the Bowman Francis Ministry had the idea to bring Black Catholic men together for fellowship, workshops, discussions, and prayer — with the hope that the men would then take what they learned back to their communities and ministries. That dream eventually became an annual conference, and its 24th gathering just took place in Birmingham, Alabama, Oct. 15–18.The Fr. Chester P. Smith National Black Catholic Men’s Conference was created by Father Chester P. Smith, Father Charles Smith, and Father Kenneth Hamilton and invites Black Catholic men from across the United States for a weekend of faith, leadership, brotherhood, and cultural reflection.This year’s conference — hosted by the Bowman Francis Ministry, the Society of the Divine Word Missionaries, and the Office of Black Catholic Ministry of the Diocese of Birmingham — had the theme of “The Rock I Stand On,” which aimed to equip participants with the spiritual and life skills needed to take on their roles as protectors and providers.Attendees were able to experience a guided, firsthand look at Birmingham’s role in the Civil Rights movement and engage in meaningful dialogue that connects faith, justice, and social responsibility. The Civil Rights Immersion Tour also included a Harambe Town Hall, which featured notable Birmingham community leaders debating todayʼs social and political climate.Cameron Beatty serves as the conference’s program chair. For him, the conference holds a special place in his heart — Father Chester P. Smith was his godfather.
Participants at the Fr. Chester P. Smith National Black Catholic Men’s Conference, which took place Oct. 15–18, 2026, in Birmingham, Alabama. | Credit: Brent Patterson
Beatty told EWTN News in an interview that he has been attending the conferences since they first started 24 years ago.“I was in high school during the first one and I would be like a reader or an altar server … then I would start leading workshops or doing the youth workshops,” Beatty recalled. “Then it kind of evolved once he [Smith] passed away. [It was] like, ‘Hey, we need somebody to step up and take on some more leadership roles,’ because he would do a lot of the planning and the executing and thatʼs how I got involved in more of a leadership role once he passed.”He added: “We want to make sure that his legacy lives on and his commitment to the ministry lives on, and I am very busy but this is something that Iʼm committed to because I believe in it strongly.”Smith grew up in Chicago’s inner city and made history when he and his identical twin — Father Charles Smith — were ordained priests in 1988, becoming the first pair of African American twins to become priests in the United States. As a priest, he rose to become an international leader in African American ministry and youth outreach.He founded Ambassadors of the Word, a peer group ministry program that fosters youth rites of passage and cross-cultural experiences. And he and his brother developed Boyhood to Manhood, a parish-based program to help young Black men realize their value, get in touch with their spirituality, and train future Church leaders. And he was a co-founder of the Bowman Francis Ministry, which is an outreach organization that evangelizes and ministers to Black Catholics.Smith died on April 8, 2020, at the age of 60. Father Charles Smith is still alive.Beatty called his godfather “an amazing, amazing person.”“We would say they’re [the Smith brothers] the Ying and the Yang,” he shared. “Father Chester was the outgoing one, the boisterous one. He was the one that would go out and do revivals in Black Catholic communities, he would go out and do the Lent services. People from all over the country knew him because they would invite him to their parish as a guest priest or a guest homilist … Father Charles, heʼs a little — and Iʼll say this to his face — heʼs a little bit more reserved. He likes to keep to himself. He can still preach, he can still minister. But, them together were just a powerful force.”Beatty explained that Smith’s great contribution to the Black Catholic community was that he remained “unapologetic” about the cultural aspect found in the identity of being a Black Catholic.A couple of years before Smith passed away, Beatty recalled an instance where Smith gave a powerful message at the men’s conference. While Smith typically never chose to include himself in the list of speakers — he preferred remaining as the planner behind the scenes — that year he decided to preach.“He preached that year and I just had never — Iʼve grown up with him, Iʼve known him my entire life — and Iʼve just never seen him preach that way,” Beatty shared. “He talked about the Promised Land, what does it mean to get to the Promised Land, and you canʼt just show up at the Promised Land, you have to work to get there … You hear it all the time, you hear the Scripture, you hear the reading, but I just had never heard it framed that way so passionately that it just resonated with me.”He added: “I could see after he had preached, he was so drained and exhausted because he put everything, his whole body, his whole spirit, into that message. And I just had never felt that or seen that from him as many times as Iʼve seen him preach. And to me that was just transformative for me, and thatʼs why I commit to this and hope to see the conference go on for many, many years.”
Mass is celebrated during the Fr. Chester P. Smith National Black Catholic Men’s Conference, which took place Oct. 15–18, 2026, in Birmingham, Alabama. | Credit: Brent Patterson
Beatty said he believes a conference like the Fr. Chester P. Smith National Black Catholic Men’s Conference is needed “for folks to feel like they have a strong community.”“Sometimes folks might be going to an African-American parish in their respective city or sometimes theyʼre the only Black family in their parish, given on where they live or practice their Catholicism,” he explained. “So, I think a conference like this gives folks an opportunity to come together with like-minded men … and itʼs an opportunity to have conversations that sometimes they canʼt have in their respective parishes.”Beatty said he hopes that those who attended the conference took away “some energy to go back to their respective communities and still evangelize about what it means to be Catholic, about what it means to be Black and Catholic, about what it means to be a man that is Black and Catholic in terms of the leaders of their family, the leaders in their community, the leaders within their parishes, their churches, and take away some tools in order to enact those types of things of ministering to folks that might not have any idea of what it means to be Christian and to be Catholic.”](https://unitedyam.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/conference-encourages-black-catholic-men-to-lead-families-parishes-and-communities-catholic-twenty-four-years-ago-three-priests-from-the-society-of-the-divine-word-and-founders-of-the-bowman-franci.png "Conference encourages Black Catholic men to lead families, parishes, and communities #Catholic Twenty-four years ago three priests from the Society of the Divine Word and founders of the Bowman Francis Ministry had the idea to bring Black Catholic men together for fellowship, workshops, discussions, and prayer — with the hope that the men would then take what they learned back to their communities and ministries. That dream eventually became an annual conference, and its 24th gathering just took place in Birmingham, Alabama, Oct. 15–18.The Fr. Chester P. Smith National Black Catholic Men’s Conference was created by Father Chester P. Smith, Father Charles Smith, and Father Kenneth Hamilton and invites Black Catholic men from across the United States for a weekend of faith, leadership, brotherhood, and cultural reflection.This year’s conference — hosted by the Bowman Francis Ministry, the Society of the Divine Word Missionaries, and the Office of Black Catholic Ministry of the Diocese of Birmingham — had the theme of “The Rock I Stand On,” which aimed to equip participants with the spiritual and life skills needed to take on their roles as protectors and providers.Attendees were able to experience a guided, firsthand look at Birmingham’s role in the Civil Rights movement and engage in meaningful dialogue that connects faith, justice, and social responsibility. The Civil Rights Immersion Tour also included a Harambe Town Hall, which featured notable Birmingham community leaders debating todayʼs social and political climate.Cameron Beatty serves as the conference’s program chair. For him, the conference holds a special place in his heart — Father Chester P. Smith was his godfather.
Participants at the Fr. Chester P. Smith National Black Catholic Men’s Conference, which took place Oct. 15–18, 2026, in Birmingham, Alabama. | Credit: Brent Patterson
Beatty told EWTN News in an interview that he has been attending the conferences since they first started 24 years ago.“I was in high school during the first one and I would be like a reader or an altar server … then I would start leading workshops or doing the youth workshops,” Beatty recalled. “Then it kind of evolved once he [Smith] passed away. [It was] like, ‘Hey, we need somebody to step up and take on some more leadership roles,’ because he would do a lot of the planning and the executing and thatʼs how I got involved in more of a leadership role once he passed.”He added: “We want to make sure that his legacy lives on and his commitment to the ministry lives on, and I am very busy but this is something that Iʼm committed to because I believe in it strongly.”Smith grew up in Chicago’s inner city and made history when he and his identical twin — Father Charles Smith — were ordained priests in 1988, becoming the first pair of African American twins to become priests in the United States. As a priest, he rose to become an international leader in African American ministry and youth outreach.He founded Ambassadors of the Word, a peer group ministry program that fosters youth rites of passage and cross-cultural experiences. And he and his brother developed Boyhood to Manhood, a parish-based program to help young Black men realize their value, get in touch with their spirituality, and train future Church leaders. And he was a co-founder of the Bowman Francis Ministry, which is an outreach organization that evangelizes and ministers to Black Catholics.Smith died on April 8, 2020, at the age of 60. Father Charles Smith is still alive.Beatty called his godfather “an amazing, amazing person.”“We would say they’re [the Smith brothers] the Ying and the Yang,” he shared. “Father Chester was the outgoing one, the boisterous one. He was the one that would go out and do revivals in Black Catholic communities, he would go out and do the Lent services. People from all over the country knew him because they would invite him to their parish as a guest priest or a guest homilist … Father Charles, heʼs a little — and Iʼll say this to his face — heʼs a little bit more reserved. He likes to keep to himself. He can still preach, he can still minister. But, them together were just a powerful force.”Beatty explained that Smith’s great contribution to the Black Catholic community was that he remained “unapologetic” about the cultural aspect found in the identity of being a Black Catholic.A couple of years before Smith passed away, Beatty recalled an instance where Smith gave a powerful message at the men’s conference. While Smith typically never chose to include himself in the list of speakers — he preferred remaining as the planner behind the scenes — that year he decided to preach.“He preached that year and I just had never — Iʼve grown up with him, Iʼve known him my entire life — and Iʼve just never seen him preach that way,” Beatty shared. “He talked about the Promised Land, what does it mean to get to the Promised Land, and you canʼt just show up at the Promised Land, you have to work to get there … You hear it all the time, you hear the Scripture, you hear the reading, but I just had never heard it framed that way so passionately that it just resonated with me.”He added: “I could see after he had preached, he was so drained and exhausted because he put everything, his whole body, his whole spirit, into that message. And I just had never felt that or seen that from him as many times as Iʼve seen him preach. And to me that was just transformative for me, and thatʼs why I commit to this and hope to see the conference go on for many, many years.”
Mass is celebrated during the Fr. Chester P. Smith National Black Catholic Men’s Conference, which took place Oct. 15–18, 2026, in Birmingham, Alabama. | Credit: Brent Patterson
Beatty said he believes a conference like the Fr. Chester P. Smith National Black Catholic Men’s Conference is needed “for folks to feel like they have a strong community.”“Sometimes folks might be going to an African-American parish in their respective city or sometimes theyʼre the only Black family in their parish, given on where they live or practice their Catholicism,” he explained. “So, I think a conference like this gives folks an opportunity to come together with like-minded men … and itʼs an opportunity to have conversations that sometimes they canʼt have in their respective parishes.”Beatty said he hopes that those who attended the conference took away “some energy to go back to their respective communities and still evangelize about what it means to be Catholic, about what it means to be Black and Catholic, about what it means to be a man that is Black and Catholic in terms of the leaders of their family, the leaders in their community, the leaders within their parishes, their churches, and take away some tools in order to enact those types of things of ministering to folks that might not have any idea of what it means to be Christian and to be Catholic.”")
The national Black Catholic men’s conference took place in Birmingham, Alabama, Oct. 15–18, carrying on the legacy of Father Chester P. Smith.
The crew of NASA’s Artemis II mission visited NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama on Sept. 1, 2026.
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